We
are celebrating today the first International Literacy Day of the third
millennium. We must never forget that literacy is indeed a cause for celebration:
for individuals and their families and for society at large. Humankind
has achieved spectacular progress in regard to literacy: there are now
close to four billion literate people in the world. Moreover, many of
today's rapid technological advances are focused on information and communication,
which are central to the practice of literacy. The new information and
communication technologies offer the prospect of many new and fascinating
opportunities to literate persons. Extract from the Director-General's Message on the
occasion of International Literacy Day, 8 September 2001